The Cowboys and Seahawks played one of the most exciting games in the NFL this season, with Dallas coming back for a 41-35 victory. But it also was one of the most penalized games in the NFL this season, with the yellow flags giving it a start-stop feel.
Referee Clete Blackman and his crew stole the show with 25 called penalties, 19 accepted. It tied for the third-most flags in a game, and the 257 yards in penalties between the two teams was the most in an NFL game this season.
The 49ers and Browns, who played Oct. 15, had the previous high with 25 accepted penalties for 224 yards.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll wasn’t happy with the flag-fest that included 10 accepted penalties for 130 yards against his team.
“It’s unfortunate. It feels like there’s a whole other factor in this game,” Carroll said. “I don’t know. You guys saw it a lot better than I did, but there were just way too many penalties in this game from both sides, and we’ve got to get out of that kind of football.”
The Cowboys ended up with nine penalties for 127 yards.
“They were against both of us, and that bunch was throwing them,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “That secondary was full of them. It’s frustrating, but they were calling them.”